Predicament
by Tobina
Summary: Shinichi finds himself in trouble again after he was called to help one of Ran's fellow college students. Somehow, he had hoped that he could live a peaceful life now, but things don't always turn out as planned and being a well known detective can have its downsides indeed. **Part 3 of the Scars-Series, but kind of stand alone-ish.**
1. one

**A/N:** Yeah - another story. And the very good news: it's already done! It's not nearly as long as Scars or Guns and Roses, but it is a kind of a sequel, as it takes up a few years after Guns and Roses. Reading the other two stories is of course recommended, but not necessary.

 **Summary:** Shinichi finds himself in a very delicate situation after he was called to help a fellow college student. Somehow he had hoped that he could live a peaceful life now, but things don't always turn out as planned. Set after 'Scars' and 'Guns and Gems'.

* * *

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Detective Conan or any of its characters and concepts! They all belong to Gosho Aoyama.

* * *

 **Predicament**  
one  
-ooOOoo-

* * *

The smell of coffee dragged him from his sleep. He groaned and decided that it still was way too early to get up, even though he knew that Ran would be back in their room any minute. Judging by the grogginess that clung to him, last night's case must have kept him awake longer than he thought.

Ran would not be pleased that he had been up so late again. She always scolded him for not taking care of his health and that four hours of sleep weren't nearly enough for a twenty-one years old man. Especially not if said man was trying to reconcile not only his studies for college, but also the jobs he got from the Beika Police Department as an independent consultant and the clients who came to him directly.

Okay – so maybe Ran had a point there.

It was one of the reasons why she had decided (no, he didn't have much of a say in that matter) that the two of them would take a small apartment together instead of living in the dorms on the campus. That way she was able to take care of him as she saw fit. Shinichi didn't complain about it - much.

He still couldn't believe his luck and that he was living with the girl he loved and that her parents had actually agreed to it. Well, maybe that Ran and Shinichi were engaged now had been part of the decision.

Yes – he had finally popped the question after they had graduated and the trials of the cases involving the Black Organization and the Syndicate that had been after KID were over.

Now, they both attended their respective college courses. Not much surprising, he had chosen criminology and psychology. Ran had opted for medicine, despite of her mother's offer to work in her office as a lawyer later. Facing down criminals in court just wasn't her thing, as she had realized on the occasional case where she'd had to solve the crime. She was way too emphatic for this line of work, so something where she could help others actively was way better suited for her.

Old man Mouri had been devastated to let his little girl go off with 'that detective brat' (what had earned him a whack over the head from his wife, Eri) but Ran visited him often to clean the agency and to take care that he didn't let things slide in her absence. Surprisingly, Eri could be found with her husband very frequently now, and Ran was delighted about it.

His own parents were still living in the mansion and just were away for travelling every now and then when Yusaku's work demanded for it. Like touring with a new book. It had felt a bit weird to constantly have them around again in the beginning, but they all had settled down in their new everyday lifes fairly quickly.

And one part of Shinichi's everyday life now, was that Ran made coffee for him in the morning. Heavenly, black, strong, vitalizing coffee.

Again, Shinichi took a deep breath and let the smell stimulate his spirits and rolled around to get out of bed.

Or tried to roll around.

"What the…?" he mumbled when he found that he couldn't move his hands or feet. Still a bit befuddled, he opened his eyes and gasped.

This wasn't their bedroom at all.

He was lying on a very comfortable king-sized bed and found his hands and feet strapped to the bedposts with padded but sturdy leather cuffs. Next to the bed was a nightstand with flowers and a glass of water on it. The curtains were closed, shutting out what seemed to be the late afternoon sun and had an ornamental print on them. All in all, the room seemed nice enough with the natural wooden furniture and the crème colored wall papers, but it wasn't _theirs_ and he was _tied to the bed_.

 _'Ok – deep breathes. What is the last thing you remember?'_ he forced himself to stay calm and to analyze his situation. Panic wouldn't do him any good right now.

He had been in his usual courses – nothing special there. He'd had lunch with Ran and had accompanied her to her next class, where she had met up with some fellow students, and he had left the campus to go to the Police Department. The case had been wrapped up soon and he had gone home. Nothing special either.

His phone had rung, and it had been a girl from Ran's medical class. Shinichi had met her a few times when he had picked up Ran. Her name was Fukui Kamiko and they had conversed a bit while he'd waited for Ran to pack up her things. She was nice and quiet and seemingly had a very demanding boyfriend, who controlled her every move.

He had offered his help and gave her his contacts, but she had declined. She was clearly intimidated by her boyfriend's behavior and Shinichi had watched her closely every time they met. So far, there hadn't been signs that spoke of physical abuse, but he had told Ran about his suspicions so she could keep an eye out as well and maybe talk to the girl. Her relationship clearly wasn't healthy and maybe she would open up to a woman rather than another man.

So, when Fukui had called him from her home with a tearful voice and stammered incoherently, he had told her to stay put and had asked for her address. She lived two districts away, but with a cab Shinichi was at her home in twenty minutes.

Fukui's home was a two-storied house where her family had lived together before their parents had gotten divorced and now she lived there on her own. Something about her father moving out and her mother travelling a lot.

After his knocking, she had opened the door carefully, and after seeing it was him, she had flung herself at Shinichi and cried her eyes out.

Embarrassed but understanding, he had maneuvered her into the house and to a couch in her living room, where she had broken down completely.

Apparently, her boyfriend had thought she cheated on him and had threatened to hurt her if she didn't tell her the guy's name. But because there was no guy Fukui was seeing, she had to make up something on the spot. In her confused state, she had told him the first name she could come up with. And that had been Shinichi's.

The boyfriend, his name was Takada Katsuo, had recognized the name right away and had been furious. After some screaming and shouting that had terrified Fukui, he had stormed off to find Shinichi, to beat him to a pulp. Don't knowing what else to do, Fukui had called Shinichi then.

Shinichi had tried to console her and to get more information out of her, but she was too shaken. She had asked if it was okay to make some tea, because that would calm her down somewhat. He'd taken on the task, because he didn't trust her handling the hot water in her state. When he came back to the living room with the teapot, she had set out two porcelain cups with colored stripes on it. One pink and one blue. He'd filled both and offered her the pink one. She'd accepted gratefully and had curled up on the couch.

Shinichi had tried to call Megure, to inform him that Takada was out for blood, but he didn't reach him. He'd sat down with the phone in his one and the cup in his other hand and waited a few minutes before he would try again. Meanwhile, he carefully sipped on his tea.

Fukui was still wide eyed and shivering and he'd wondered if he should call Ran over to give some solace. She was very good with such things. Also, in his haste to get to Fukui, he had forgotten to leave Ran a note to let her know where he was. He'd put the cup on the table, began to speed-dial her number and then…

…nothing.

Shinichi couldn't remember what had happened afterwards, no matter how hard he tried.

He cursed under his breath. Did Takada come back and knock him out? But he didn't feel any pain that indicated a hit on the head or something similar. Just this lingering numbness in his body and it still was a bit hard to focus.

Drugged then.

Damn. The tea.

It must have been the tea, for it had been the only thing he had consumed while he was in the house. So, it had been Fukui's doing. It just stood to question if she was acting on her own accord or if Takada had forced her hand.

But well, the fact that he was lying on a bed instead of being beaten up and ditched somewhere pointed to the former. He thought back at the different colored cups and realized how easily she had manipulated him. Of course, a man would rather take a blue than a pink cup. It was a very simple psychological trick. The inside of the cup must have been coated with the drug, because there hadn't been any fluids in it when he had poured the tea. It must have been a strong drug to knock him out after just some sips.

A beginner's mistake, but he hadn't had any reason to be suspicious of her. She had been the victim – or so it seemed. Now, he wasn't sure anymore which times she had lied and when she had told the truth. She must be one hell of an actor.

Speaking of beginner's mistakes. Normally he would never go to a client's home alone.

Shinichi always invited his clients to a public place or if privacy was necessary, his parent's house when his father was present as well. Sometimes Mouri allowed him to use his agency. It was an agreement that stemmed from their two-month's work together. Usually these cases tended to be ones he delegated to the police or worked with Mouri. They found that they could solve cases together quite successfully, even if not on a daily basis. After all, he had promised Ran not to take on any dangerous cases alone anymore.

However, Fukui's distress had triggered his urge to protect, and because he had known of her trouble beforehand, and had already offered his help, he had been careless. She was a friend of Ran's, or at least was acquainted with her, therefore he had let down his guard even further.

 _'Ran. She will wonder why I'm not home when her classes are over. How long have I been here anyway? Is it still Tuesday?'_

He turned his hands and feet as much as possible to test his bonds, just to find that he would not be able to get out of them. He sighed frustrated. Why was he here? What did Fukui want with him? Shinichi racked his brain, but couldn't come up with any reason. She didn't look like she needed money – so, ransom was out. As far as he knew, she wasn't connected to any of his cases, so revenge was unlikely too, though he couldn't claim to know all the relatives of the persons that had gone behind bars because of his deductions. Maybe…

The door opened a crack and Fukui glimpsed inside.

"Oh, Kudou-kun, you're awake already. Good," she exclaimed happily and came in, a cup of coffee in hands. She stepped next to the bed and exchanged the coffee for the glass with water. "You must be thirsty. Come, I'll help you."

Shinichi flinched away from the offered glass, afraid that the water might be drugged as well. "Fukui-san, what is going on here? Untie me right now!"

Fukui look at him and her face scrunched up in disappointment. "Honey, I'm afraid that is not possible. Sorry."

 _'Honey?'_ Shinichi cringed inwardly. He had a very bad feeling where this was going.

Fukui sat down on the mattress and began to rub (in her opinion) reassuring circles on his thigh. Shinichi tried to get away from her touch, but to no avail. She didn't seem to notice his discomfort or she ignored it altogether. "You know, Kudou-kun…", she giggled softly. "Well, I think I might as well call you Shinichi. After all, you are my boyfriend now."

She softly spoke his name a few times like was something very delicate and she tested out the syllables with a blush on her face.

Shinichi's eyes widened in horror. What? Boyfriend? This had to be a sick joke, right? This girl didn't really think that he was her boyfriend, did she?

 _'Is she delusional? Did she make up this relationship between us and is now acting on it?'_

Talking to someone with a delusional disorder was tricky. Shinichi wasn't sure if he could do it as he couldn't estimate what would set her off. If that happened, this could end in something worse for him than some lost dignity.

"Fukui-san, why do you think we are a couple?" he asked carefully. He needed to know how far she was gone. Maybe if he stalled for time, Ran would find him. His cellphone must be in the house somewhere and Ran was able to track it. The question was, when she would realize that something was off and that he needed help. Would she pick up on the fact that he didn't leave a note for her and conclude that something was amiss? Or would she just think he'd forgotten and be mad?

He silently cursed his habit to stay out long for cases. It could take some time until she worried and would call Megure to ask for him. _'Megure.'_ He had tried to call him and normally, the Inspector would try to call him back when he noticed the missed call. When Shinichi wouldn't pick up, maybe he would get suspicious and help would be here very soon.

He inhaled a calming breath and turned his attention back to Fukui.

She beamed at him. "You can call me Kamiko, or Kami-chan if you like." Shinichi suppressed the urge to shudder while she went on.

"I knew from the first time I met you in person that we ought to be together." Thoughtfully, she tipped on her chin with one finger. "Actually, I've followed your cases since high-school. I was so impressed when I heard what you did! Dismantling a whole organization!"

A fangirl then, just great. And a crazy one at that. Shinichi might have preened under their attention back then, but he had learned fast that it was better to keep them at least at arm's length away. If only to avoid Ran's wrath, as she didn't take it very well when they hung all over him. And he didn't like it either. Fukui wasn't the first to confess her (unrequited) feelings to him, but she sure was the first to hold him captive. His luck just sucked.

Fukui continued like it wasn't totally weird to speak to a bound man on her bed. "When I heard that you've enrolled in the university in Tokyo, I just _had_ to go there as well. That I ended up in some classes with Mouri was the cherry on top. That way I got to see you more often. Though I really don't know what you see in her. She is nice and polite most of the time, but she also can be so – tomboyish. I mean… karate? I once even saw her punch an upperclassman. So disrespectful," Fukui huffed and crossed her arms before her chest. It was obvious that she thought she was a way better match for Shinichi, being all devoted and shy – and lunatic.

 _'She has no idea how wrong she is. What would I do with a girl that doesn't question my actions the least?'_

He also remembered the incident with the upperclassman, she spoke of. Ran had told him how he had tried to make unwanted advances to a girl Ran knew and he just wouldn't take 'no' for an answer. He'd had it coming. Ran never hit anyone without proper warning.

"Fukui-san…"

A sharp slap across his cheek.

"It's Kamiko. Better remember that, honey," she pouted.

Stunned, Shinichi felt how his cheek stung. Shit. Was she bipolar? How violent could she become?

"K-Kamiko," he went with her forced intimacy. It was better not to upset her any further. "What about Takada-san? He will be back anytime soon and you've said he wants to beat me up." Maybe appealing to her soft side for him would help him out of this predicament. "Don't you think it would be better if I could defend myself?"

Kamiko looked at him as if he was talking nonsense, before she laughed. "Takada? No, honey. He won't come back, no worries. He didn't exist to begin with. I just needed you to take an interest in me and I knew that you couldn't resist a case. Also, you would never leave a girl in distress."

Shinichi's eyes widened. So, it had been a ruse from the start? Her mental state worried him more with every minute. It hadn't just been a chance she took when it presented itself, she had planned to lure him here since the day she told him about her fictive boyfriend. What else had she prepared for?

The doorbell rang through the house.

"Seems like Mouri arrived at last," she said with a sigh and got up. She opened the drawer on the nightstand and took out a syringe. "Can't have you making too much noise, honey," she winked at him. "Sweat dreams."

"No," Shinichi shouted and began to trash in his bonds. "Don't! Ran! I'm here!"

Kamiko just shook her head with a sad expression. "You will forget about her soon," she said and jabbed the needle into his upper arm. The plunger was pressed down and immediately, Shinichi felt how the world slipped.

"Ran, I…" he whispered before he passed out.


	2. two

**Predicament**  
two  
-ooOOoo-

* * *

Ran stood in front of Fukui's house and waited after she'd rung the bell with a frown on her face.

Shinichi hadn't been home when she got back after her last class. That in itself wasn't unusual. Often enough he was at the Police Department or at a crime scene and got home after her, even when it was late like today. But they had agreed that he would leave her a note or message her if he left. Maybe she was overprotective, but in her opinion, it was totally reasonable. After all, Shinichi got in a lot of trouble and she felt better when she knew what he was up to and where he was going.

So, when she hadn't found a note and there was no message on her phone either, she had been a bit worried. First, she'd tried to call him, but he didn't pick up. When he was in the middle of an investigation he sometimes would turn off the ringtone. She waited for an hour if he would call her back, like he always did in these situations. He didn't.

Next, she'd called Megure, who just had come out of a meeting.

"Kudou-kun?", the Inspector had asked confused. "I've sent him home after the case he helped us with. That has been… around two o' clock."

Ran swallowed. That had been four hours ago. It was shortly after six now.

"Ran-san?", Megure asked, wariness evident in his tone. "Did something happen?"

She shook herself. She was overreacting. Maybe he'd stumbled over another case on his way back and just forget to tell her. "No. No, nothing happened, keibu. It's just…" She couldn't help it. She had the nagging feeling that something wasn't right.

"Oh," Megure exclaimed. "I just saw that Kudou-kun tried to reach me this afternoon. My cellphone was muted during the meeting, so I didn't notice until now. That was at quarter past three."

Quarter past three. Where had he been when… "Oh, I'm so stupid! His phone – I can track it! Sorry Megure-keibu, I have to hang up now."

It was very impolite, but Ran didn't care right now and was already calling up the app on her cellphone. From the saved trackable contacts, she chose Shinichi and waited while the system searched for the signal. Blessed be modern technology.

After a few seconds, a yellow dot showed her the location of the phone and she wrote down the address. It wasn't too far and she grabbed her purse and jacket and was out of the door.

And now she was standing here.

She hadn't known it was Fukui's address, but it made sense that Shinichi was with her. He had told her about his concerns about Fukui's boyfriend. She just couldn't understand why he hadn't informed her that he was going to meet her class mate.

Now that she knew his whereabouts, her worry slowly turned into irritation.

Shinichi _knew_ how she felt when he disappeared like this. Why did he do this to her?

Ran heard some faint noises coming from inside the house. Was there someone yelling? She couldn't understand a thing. She had half the mind to break down the door, when the sounds stopped.

A few moments later the door opened an Fukui stood there with a surprised look on her face.

"Mouri-san, hello! Can I help you?"

Ran forced a smile. It wasn't Fukui's fault that Shinichi was a jerk sometimes. "Hey, Fukui-san. Please excuse my sudden intrusion, but may I speak with Shinichi?"

"Kudou-kun?" Fukui replied and blinked owlishly. "He was here to help me with my…, well,… boyfriend problems, but he's gone already, I'm afraid."

"Gone?" Ran asked confused and pulled out her phone to take a look at the app again. The dot hadn't moved. "That's strange. I tracked his phone and it seems to be here," she said and showed Fukui the screen.

Fukui hummed in thought. "Well, maybe he forgot it? Come in, we'll search for it together."

"Thank you, Fukui-san, that's very nice of you."

Ran got in and took off her shoes. They were the only ones beside Fukui's shoes at the entrance. She followed the other girl into the living room and looked around if she could see Shinichi's phone anywhere. In one corner was a TV and some show was still running, but without sound. So, that must have been the noises she'd heard. She felt silly. Was she really that paranoid? To think that she almost had broken into someone's home, just because of a loud TV show. She shook off the thought and continued her search.

Through another door, she could see into the kitchen. It was as tidy as the rest of what she had seen of the house so far. Just two cups stood overturned next to the sink to dry.

"Found it!" Fukui exclaimed and held up the phone she apparently had found between the cushions on the couch. She reached it to Ran, who looked at it pensively. It was muted, what explained why Fukui hadn't heard it when Ran had tried to call.

"Did Shinichi say, where he wanted to go?" Maybe Fukui knew something that could help her find her elusive fiancé.

"Uh, I'm afraid no. Sorry I can't help you, Mouri-san," Fukui said and seemed to be a bit ashamed that she couldn't be of any assistance. As if it was her fault that she hadn't asked Shinichi about his further plans.

Ran smiled reassuringly. "No no, you already helped me a lot. Thank you very much. I think I will go and ask his parents if they have seen him."

Fukui looked at her relieved and nodded. "Yes, that's a good idea."

She led Ran back to the door and waved her off. "I hope you'll find him soon. And please tell him thank you from me, he really helped me out."

"Sure, I'll do that. Bye Fukui-san."

-ooOOoo-

Kamiko closed the door and just stood there for a moment, leaned against the smooth wooden surface.

Then some giggles erupted out of her mouth.

Misleading Mouri had been much easier than she had thought.

She had been right. This girl just was not meant to be with her Shinichi. Did she not feel his presence in the house? Or smell the lingering fragrance of his cologne?

For Kamiko, these things were almost tangible when she was around him.

Kudou Shinichi had caught Kamiko's eye early on. Like she had told him, she followed all of his cases and she had done so even before he had been labeled 'The great detective of the east'. She had tons of paper clips with news articles about him, recorded videos of all interviews he had ever given, and more site marks on the internet than she could count.

She collected everything even remotely connected to him.

His father's novels, his mother's movies, she even knew which karate tournaments Mouri had competed in and how she had placed, but that was just secondary.

He was what mattered the most.

To see him and to talk to him in college had been a dream come true. She loved the tone of his voice, the bright blue of his sharp, intelligent eyes that seemed to look right through you. He was sarcastic, witty, caring, handsome, athletic, eloquent…

He was just perfect.

Seeing him with Mouri always jabbed at her heart.

She, Kamiko, should be the one he waited for after class. Whom he smiled at so warm and lovingly and who's hand he was holding on their way back home.

And soon it _would be_ her.

He was here, in her house.

And he would love her.

She'd make sure of that.


	3. three

**Predicament**  
three  
-ooOOoo-

* * *

When Shinichi came to again, it didn't take him long to remember the dire situation he was in. That he was still bound to the bedposts meant that Ran hadn't noticed anything.

He couldn't blame her. He had made the same mistake and had failed to see Fukui's true self.

He shifted a bit and suddenly was aware of a weight on his chest and a source of warmth next to him. Lying there and with her head resting on his chest was Fukui, one arm splayed over his stomach like a woman who fell asleep next to her lover.

Shinichi felt the fine hairs in his neck rising and how his muscles tensed.

He wanted to throw her off, but obviously couldn't. Also, waking her could be worse than letting her sleep upon him, because who knew what she had in mind for him?

Ran had been here and somehow Fukui had seen to it that she had left without being any the wiser about him being here. What were his options now? What would Ran do now?

First, she would ask Megure if he maybe had assigned him a new case.

Megure would notice the missed call from Shinichi and try to call him back – to no avail.

They would ask his parents if they had seen him – what they hadn't.

Maybe they would even try to get information from the college, if there were any excurses or outings planned for his courses – what weren't.

And then?

Would they come back to Fukui to look for more information as she had been the last person who had seen him? It would be the standard procedure in a missing person case. And that was what that all was leading to. Ran or his parents would have to file a missing person report after the usual timeframe had expired.

And the usual timeframe were twenty-four hours. Though he didn't think that they would wait that long to start a search in his case. Not with his history of getting caught up in dangerous stuff.

All he could do until they found him was to pull through and try to talk to Fukui. Maybe there was a chance to convince her to set him free. If he played her game and she trusted him…

He shuddered. How far would he have to go to make her believe that he was her… boyfriend?

Just the thought of touching her made him cringe – not to speak of kissing her. Oh god, would she want to…

He couldn't hold back a shuddering breath at the thought that kissing might not be the only thing she wanted to do with him.

Shinichi stiffened when he felt Fukui shift and curling up against his side. Her eyes blinked open and she looked up at him with a dreamy expression.

"Hello, honey," she smiled. "Slept well?"

Shinichi forced himself to answer her with a smile as well, but he felt that it was strained and didn't reach his eyes. He had to work on his acting if he wanted her to buy it.

"Uhm, yeah, I guess." What was he doing? He just couldn't bring himself to talk to her like… like _that_.

"Can you tell me what time it is?" he opted for a more harmless topic. He needed to know how much time had passed. Though he couldn't be sure if it even was still the day he came here, but it was most probable. A look at the closed curtains showed that the sun had set and it was dark outside.

She glanced at her wrist-watch. "It's almost 10 pm. Are you hungry? You must be." She jumped up. "I'm so sorry – you must be starving. I'll make you dinner right away." With that, she hurried out of the room and soon after he could hear her cluttering around in the kitchen.

He couldn't say that he was hungry, but he knew he had to eat at least something, or he would lose all his strength or get ill. The thought of eating food Fukui had prepared wasn't very appealing – it was actually frightening. Would she put something in it to keep him under control? Not that he could do much as long as he was tied up.

He let out a defeated sigh. Ran had to be worried sick by now. And his parents too.

For some minutes he was lost in thoughts about how life must hate him, because he always ended up in these kinds of situations.

Sooner than he would have liked, Fukui was back and balanced a cup and a bowl on a tray.

She took a remote from a small table in a corner and he felt how the upper end of the mattress began to lift. He hadn't noticed that this bed could do that, but he didn't really have a chance to take a good look at it.

"Here you go," Fukui said and sat down next to him with the tray on her lap.

To his horror, she began to spoon up what seemed to be rice with chicken-curry and wanted to feed him. He had to suppress the almost overwhelming urge to turn his head away and obediently opened his mouth.

Fukui was delighted and one spoon full after another vanished until the bowl was empty. Then she took the cup and placed it at his lips. He drank, because he had to and because he actually was thirsty.

Very pleased, Fukui observed how he swallowed down the slightly bitter tasting green tea. "I'm so happy you like my cooking, Shinichi. I've seen you eat this for lunch quite a lot so I thought it could be one of your favorites."

She had watched him very closely as it seemed. In his mind he changed her status from crazy-fan-girl to stalker, because no mere fan-girl would do anything of the stuff she did.

He hadn't even noticed that she had observed him and that kind of left a sour taste in his mouth. Had he been that inattentive? Normally, he knew immediately if someone was following him or had any ill intends against him, but he hadn't felt anything malice-like at all. Maybe because she truly thought that she loved him?

But what worried him more right now, was that his bladder made itself known and demanded that he took care of some natural needs very soon.

Maybe that could even be a chance to escape? Overall, he should be stronger than her, so it should be possible for him to overwhelm her as soon as he was out of the cuffs.

"Um, Fuku-… Kamiko," he corrected himself hastily and grinned sheepishly. "I really have to use the bathroom. Could you... " God, this was so humiliating.

She nodded. "Of course, wait a moment."

Shinichi held his breath. Was she really going to let him go alone to the bathroom?

His hopes were crushed and replaced with anxiety when she opened the drawer in the nightstand again. From his now lifted position, he could get a glimpse of its content and it sent shivers down his spine.

There were syringes. Many of them. They lay neatly side by side with different color-markings on them. The blue ones, he recognized as the one she had given him when Ran had arrived. Now she reached for a red one and presented it to him almost proudly.

"I knew that this would come up eventually and first I thought I could just place a catheter, but I don't want our first intimate contact to be like that."

Shinichi felt cold. He was thankful that she had refrained from doing so, but was appalled that she thought about … _that_ at all.

She readied the syringe. "I could have done it alright, but I thought this would be better. The syringe is filled with ketamine. Do you know what that is?"

He shuddered. He knew a thing or two about it, but he wasn't by any means an expert on medication. Ketamine was an anesthetic, used for operations and emergency medicine. It also had hallucinogen qualities.

Kamiko sat down on the mattress again. "I see, you know. I didn't expect anything less from you. Intravenous, it will put you to sleep immediately, but administered in the muscle, it takes effect after two to five minutes. After that you will rapidly become drowsy and you will experience hallucinational episodes, though this is dosed high enough that you will pass out very fast. So, I would advise you to be quick about it," she winked. "It will wear off after approximately thirty minutes."

She opened the door and showed him another room next to the one his was in.

"This is the bathroom. So, are you ready? Or do you prefer the catheter after all?"

No! He obviously wasn't ready for this, but the thought of her doing something with needles and tubes in that region of his body was even more frightening. Also, as long as he was tied to the bed he had no chance of escaping whatsoever, so he needed her to release him.

She came back to the bed and leaned down, placing a small kiss on his forehead. "Don't worry. I know what I'm doing. I studied medicine for this exact reason, you know? So, I would be able to take care of you."

Shinichi briefly closed his eyes. She had taken on medicine so she could control him with drugs? Damn, how far did her madness go?

He calmed himself as good as possible. If he had any luck, she miscalculated the dosage and he would be able to get out of the house. It was risky, because she also could give him too much, but at least he would get out of the bonds. "Okay, let's do this. I depend on you," he added and was rewarded with a radiant smile from Kamiko.

"Alright, honey." The needle sunk into his thigh and she pressed the plunger down. After that, she swiftly opened the cuffs around his hands and ankles.

Thirty seconds.

Shinichi rubbed his wrists while he got up, swaying a bit after lying down for so long and probably because of the fact that he had been given sedatives twice today already. He made his way to the door and saw that there was another door down the corridor that had to lead to an exit of some kind.

One minute.

He hesitated for a second, then he ran for the door and tried to dash through it, just to find it locked. Kamiko was at his side in an instant and pulled him away. It was alarming how easily she overpowered him. "I'm very disappointed, Shinichi, but I anticipated this. It would be asked a bit much of you to return my feelings just now. You do love me - you just don't know it yet."

Two minutes.

The doorbell rang and Kamiko cursed, shoving him back into the room with the bed.

Shinichi was desperate now. Whoever it was, it could be his chance of rescue. If they were going away, who knew when someone else would come by again. He began to shout on the top of his lungs.

"Help! Hello! Please help me!"

Two and a half minutes and now he felt the drug kicking in. The room seemed to tilt and he lost his balance. His knees gave out and he sagged to the floor. He tried to get up again, but his muscles didn't respond to his commands. Everything spun around him and he felt strangely detached from his body.

Distantly, he heard wood breaking and yelling. It sounded distorted.

The last thing he felt was how someone sat down next to him and rolled him on his back. His upper body was lifted and then rested against something soft.

Then he knew no more.

-ooOOoo-

Ran acted immediately when she heard his shout. Without a second thought she took a step back and kicked at the door with all her might. The wood splintered and the way into the house was open.

Megure, Satou and Takagi who accompanied her, looked stunned, but regained their senses very fast and followed her in.

They had come back to Fukui to question her a second time. She had seen Shinichi last and maybe she remembered something that could help them find the missing detective. That they would be confronted with something like this had not crossed their minds.

They ran through the living room and passed the kitchen. Ran looked around desperately. Where had the voice come from?

Takagi tried to open a door to the side of the room, but it was locked. "Megure-keibu," he got the attention of the others.

Megure took position next to the door and ordered, "Open up! This is the police! If you don't open this door in the next three seconds, we'll break it down. One!"

He counted down and after nothing happened, he shot the lock open.

All four of them ran through the corridor that lead to another open door. What they found there made them stop dead in their tracks.

Ran gasped.

Shinichi was lying propped up against Fukui, who was sitting on the floor. He was unconscious, but what really caught her breath was the needle, Fukui pressed to his neck. Fukui had tears in her eyes and watched them like a wounded animal.

"Fukui-san," Megure began and held up his hands to show her that he wouldn't use his weapon. Satou and Takagi followed suit. He took a step in her direction.

"No!" she shouted. "Stay where you are or I will give him the shot! He is mine!"

Ran watched her bewildered. What was going on? "Fukui-san, what is the meaning of this?" she asked in a soft voice, not to enrage the other girl any further.

Fukui's attention snapped to Ran. "You! You will never get him back! He is mine! Mine! You could never love him like I do!"

Love him? Ran was confused. Fukui had never shown anything more than mild interest in Shinichi. Where did these sudden extreme emotions come from? But no matter what had caused it, they had to get Shinichi away from her as soon as possible.

She exchanged a brief glance with the others and stepped forward just the tiniest bit. She knew Fukui best, even if that didn't seem to be much by the looks of it.

"I'm sure you have... deep feelings for Shinichi," she started. It seemed to be the best way to approach her. If she could get Fukui to think about Shinichi's wellbeing, maybe she would release him.

"I know you don't want anything to happen to him. Please look at him. He needs help. Tell me what happened?"

Fukui laughed. "What happened? You came in and destroyed all of my careful planning. That happened!" At the end of the sentence she was screaming. "I finally have him here with me, after all the years I just admired him from afar. After all the work I did to be able to take care of him." Now she sobbed. "Go away! We will be alright! He doesn't need anyone but me!" She grabbed harder onto the syringe and the needle drew a little blood where it scraped the skin.

Ran's insides turned and she paled. That girl was absolutely out of her mind. She was obsessed with the thought of Shinichi.

Shinichi, whose face was shining with a thin layer of sweat and whose breathing was off. He wasn't just unconscious. She must have drugged him. "Fukui-san, what did you give to him?" Ran asked and couldn't stop her voice from wavering.

"Takagi, call for an ambulance," Megure immediately instructed and Takagi reached for his phone.

"Stop!" Fukui shrilled. "I have everything under control. He doesn't need an ambulance." Her whole body shook, but she still held onto Shinichi with all she had.

"I gave him ketamine, it's nothing dangerous. I got a look at his medical records. He is not allergic or anything. I even have diazepam here to treat the after effects."

Ran's mind raced. His medical records? How did she get them? They hadn't made their year as residents at a hospital yet, so how did she get her hands on…

"From when where those records?" she asked, though she already knew the answer.

Fukui frowned at her. "From high-school. I'm actually a year older than you and before college, I took on a job at the infirmary of your school. All of you have a medical record there from the annual examinations."

"You fool!" Ran couldn't hold back anymore. She knew what ketamine was doing and Shinichi's life was in danger if he didn't get proper help soon. "You don't know the first thing when it comes to Shinichi and still you claim to love him? You're killing him!"

Now Fukui got furious too. "Shut up! I studied for this and my test results are way better than yours, Mouri, so don't try to be a smart ass here. And I know everything there is to know about Shinichi!"

Ran clenched her hands into tight fists and bit her lips. "You think you know him? Fine then. What is his favorite color?"

"Red."

"Wrong, it's blue. He just says it's red, because that is _my_ favorite color. His closet doesn't contain a single red piece of clothing aside from the sweater I made for him. What is his favorite book?"

"A study in scarlet."

"Wrong again. Yes, he loves this book, but his favorite one is the first Night Baron novel, written by his father, because he wrote it for Shinichi. Shinichi would never admit that to his father, but he told me once. Where has he been, when he vanished for over two years? What happened to him?"

Fukui seemed confused. "Everyone knows that. He was undercover to take down the Black Organization. He was in the hospital with a bullet wound and some scrapes afterwards, but nothing too serious."

"And that is where you are wrong again. You just know what the public knows. What has been in the newspapers. You know nothing! They did bad things to him. He had two cardiac arrests. Two! In one day! And you are giving him ketamine? It's accelerating the heart-beat and his already weakened heart muscle won't be able to take it." Ran was frightened and worried and frantic. She needed Fukui to understand. Now!

"But,... the records... and no news station reported that he had been hospitalized before," Fukui stammered.

"Obviously, Kudou-kun has not officially been in the hospital directly after the take down. That would have been way too dangerous. That's why the public doesn't know about it," Megure cut in. And because Kudou had still been Conan at that time, but that wasn't something Fukui had to know.

Takagi was standing slightly behind him and typed a message into his phone with his hands behind his back. They needed an ambulance here. Fast.

Ran nodded curtly and turned back to Fukui. She leaned forward with outstretched hands and a pleading expression. "Please, Fukui-san. If you really love him, let us help him. Can't you see that these are no normal symptoms after receiving ketamine?"

Fukui looked down at Shinichi. Looked at his pale, slack face. Felt his racing heart-beat. And finally broke down.

"I'm so sorry, Shinichi!" she cried out and buried her face in his hair. The needle fell from her lax fingers to the floor next to her knee. "I just wanted you to see me! To be with me! When I heard that you two were engaged, I knew that this was my last chance. I had to convince you to choose me over Mouri before the wedding."

Satou and Takagi ran over. Satou carefully picked up the needle and Takagi pulled Fukui away from Shinichi, who now was in Ran's protecting embrace.

"Shinichi," she sobbed. Now that the immediate danger was over, she allowed herself to cry. "It will be alright. Help will be here soon!" She rocked back and forth with him in her arms. "Hang in there, Shinichi."

-ooOOoo-

The night has been long. So very, very long.

After Fukui had been arrested, the ambulance had been there in minutes. They had rushed Shinichi to the next hospital and saved his life. Ten or fifteen minutes longer and his heart would have given out.

Now he was sleeping peacefully under the white covers of the hospital bed, with proper medication hooked up to him, to help with the aftereffects of the ketamine, which where states of anxiety and hallucinations to just name a few.

The hallucinations had been bad when he woke once in the middle of the night, not knowing where he was and not recognizing Ran. He believed that he still was at Fukui's mercy and had mistaken Ran for her. No amount of rassurance had been enough to calmed him down, so the nurse had to increase his dose to prevent that he hurt Ran or himself with his trashing. To see him like that had been painful and when he finally fell back asleep, Ran had cried.

Now, she had situated herself next to him on the bed after Shinichi's parents had been here and left again to come back later. It wasn't really comfortable, but she needed the physical contact to reassure herself that he was still there. It had been so close. Again.

She closed her eyes.

She would have to call her own parents soon, who didn't know what had happened. Ran had been so frantic, that she totally forgot to inform them.

It would be alright.

Shinichi would be alright.

-ooOOoo-

Shinichi woke to something poking his ribs.

He frowned and turned away from the annoying disruption of his sleep. He felt dead tired and all he wanted to do was to curl up again and be left alone.

The poking continued until he opened his eyes and turned to the source with a miffed, "What?"

"Good to see you awake again, Kudou-kun," greeted him the flat voice of Haibara Ai, though she now went by the name Miyano Shiho again.

She had taken the antidote eventually, after the trials had been over. Now she was working at Beika General Hospital as a scientist for biochemistry. She also did a lot of social work to amend for her work with the BO, though the police never had arrested her. They didn't hold her responsible for something she had done under pressure and she herself had never harmed anyone. That her poison had been used to kill people had been out of her control.

So, he was at Beika General obviously, as she was wearing her lab-coat with the name tag identifying her as hospital staff.

"What happened?" He pinched the bridge of his nose, while pushing himself in a more seated position. A headache seemed to linger behind his eyes.

"Still feeling it?" Shiho asked in a more sympathetic tone than he was used to hear from her. "It might take some time for the withdrawal symptoms to subside. You have been lucky she only gave you one dose. A second one would have been devastating."

Withdrawal symptoms? Dose? Why would he...?

In a rush of pictures the events from yesterday came back to him. He gasped and let himself fall back onto the pillow, one hand on his head. "Oh my god - Fukui Kamiko."

"Yes, that's right. I'm really considering to implant a tracker under your skin, so Ran-san won't have to worry that much about you in the future," she said nonchalantly. Somehow he had the feeling that she wasn't completely kidding.

"Speaking of," Shiho added and stood up when the door to his room opened and Ran stepped in. When she saw that Shinichi was awake, she hurried over to his bed and pulled him into a wordless hug.

Shiho stepped back. "I'm going to inform your doctor and then I will head back to do my job. Don't make me do this again, Kudou-kun. I'm not getting paid for sick-bed visits," she said and left with a short wave.

Ran still clung to Shinichi. She inhaled deeply and relished his scent, even though it was mixed with the smell of sweat and medication.

"I don't know what I'm going to do with you, Kudou Shinichi," she mumbled without letting go. "As soon as I let you out of my sight, something happens to you. I don't think I can stand it when one day I will be too late. I know you are not asking for trouble - at least not anymore, but I'm so afraid. I don't dare to let you alone for more than a few minutes. How will that work? What should I do?"

Shinichi returned her embrace just as fierce. "I think Miyano might have an idea or two about that, though I'm not sure if you really should go and ask her about it," he tried to lighten the mood. There wasn't much else he could do. "You know I can't stop being a detective and my work will always bring some dangerous situations with it. I can just promise you again that I will do everything possible to stay save."

He leaned back a bit to look at her face. A tear was rolling down her cheek and he gently wiped it away. "As long as I know that you are waiting for me, there will be nothing I wouldn't do to come back home to you."

"I know, it's just..." Ran sniffled.

Shinichi sighed. "Really, speak with Miyano, but don't take everything she says at face value. Come up with something reasonable and I will be happy to do whatever it takes to put your mind at ease."

"I don't think that even Shiho-san can do anything to achieve that, but maybe you're right. Who knows how many other crazy fan-girls are out there to get you?"

He grimaced at that thought. One stalker was more than enough - thank you very much. "What happened after you rang the bell? I mean - that has been you, right? My memory fails me after that. I think I passed out shortly after."

Ran took a deep breath. Talking about it brought back the fear of the last night. "We found you unconscious and she was holding you like a hostage with a syringe against your neck. She didn't say what had been in it, but I'm sure it wouldn't have been pleasant for you."

True. A third drug wouldn't have been all that great for his system.

"We somehow talked her out of it, but it was a very close call," she said and traced the small wound on his neck with her finger. He hadn't even noticed that there was a band-aid there.

"Megure-keibu told me that they found tons of stuff in her house. Pictures, videos, unsent love-letters and enough medication to keep you sedated for at least a week." The thought alone sent shivers down her spine. The girl had been batshit crazy and Ran wondered how she could have missed the fact that Fukui was pining for Shinichi that badly.

"Don't blame youself." Shinichi took her hand and placed a kiss on it. "I didn't see it either. I'm sure the psychologist will diagnose her with a personality disorder and it often takes years for those people's social environment to realize that they are ill."

Ran looked tired. She certainly was. "I know, I know, just please - do me a favor, will you?"

"Anything you want."

"Let us go on vacation when you are discharged."

He raised an eyebrow. "Okay, why not. Anything you fancy?"

"It really doesn't matter where, as long as no one drops dead while we are around. And Shinichi," Ran added quietly. "Let's get married while we are on vacation. I don't want anything to get in our way again. We can have the big party later, with our families and so on, just - "

"Just you and me for the ceremony? Quiet and peaceful? With no interruptions?"

"Yes," she smiled. "That would be wonderful. On second thought... Maybe we should take Hattori with us, so he can handle any dead bodies - just in case."

Shinichi laughed. "Yea - I'm sure he would love that."

"So, it's a promise?" Her eyes shone brightly and so very warm. Shinichi would never need anything else in his life as long as she was looking at him like that.

"Yes, it's a promise."

* * *

 **A/N:** Aaaand it's done! Shinichi has to suffer at _lot_ in my stories. I'm terrible - I know, though I'm not sorry XD

This ghosted through my mind for quite some time now, but I didn't write anything for it while I still wasn't finished with Gun's and Roses.  
I did a little research about the medication used in this story, so overall it should be somewhat accurate, but I'm not that knowledgeable about medicine. I was a bit shocked to see that there are so many sides discussing how to best abuse medication to get high. Please guys- take care of you! Don't do drugs!

I hope you enjoyed the story. Please consider leaving me a review on the way out, I would really appreciate it!


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